Tag Archives: Singapore Tourism Board

In 2016, Singapore reported 1.2 million cruise passengers with a double digit growth of 16 per cent as compared to 2015, out of which 100,000 were from India, an increase of 29 per cent over 2015 figures. Recognising the potential that the segment holds, Singapore Tourism Board (STB) organised the second edition of its India Cruise Forum in Mumbai which was attended by 120 people. “India is a key source market for cruising out of Singapore. STB will continue to work closely with in-market partners to raise awareness of cruising as a great holiday option and sustain the growth of Singapore as a cruising hub in South East Asia. According to a consumer survey conducted in Mumbai, 34% of young Indian families are willing to spend INR 100,000 – 200,000 on a cruise holiday and 98% of the 500 travellers surveyed are open to a cruise from Singapore. There are exciting opportunities ahead and we will continue to partner with our travel trade and cruise partners to grow Singapore’s cruise Industry and promote its strong destination appeal,” said G.B. Srithar, RD SAMEA, STB. The day-long forum featured a thought provoking panel that touched on the challenges and opportunities of Growing India’s Cruise Travel Market, led by G. B. Srithar, Regional Director for South Asia, Middle East & Africa (RD SAMEA), STB with panelists Nalini Gupta, Managing Director, Lotus Destinations (GSA of Costa Cruise India), Naresh Rawal, Vice President Sales, Genting Cruise Lines – Star Cruises, Dream Cruises and Crystal Cruises, Suzanne Perreira, Senior Vice President Sales, Trade Relationships and Communications, Thomas Cook India, Anita Raja, Regional Manager – South India, TIRUN Travel Marketing and Harshali Darpel, Senior Manager – Western …

Continuing with its agenda to promote cruising from Singapore, the Singapore Tourism Board in India will conduct a second edition of its ‘India Cruise Forum’ on March 30, 2017 in Mumbai. Revealing this is G.B. Srithar, Regional Director (SAMEA), International Group, Singapore Tourism Board (STB), who says, “The format will remain more or less the same as last year. We will get the main cruise lines operating out of Singapore together with cruise industry veterans. The day-long forum will also have panel discussions that will talk about cruising in general, trends, insights into the workings of the Indian cruise industry and opportunities with key players across the value chain. India is Singapore’s number one international source market for cruising.” Dream Cruises has announced that its inaugural vessel, Genting Dream, will be home ported year-round in Singapore starting from December 3, 2017. This marks a first for Singapore to host a brand-new and large-scale 151,300-tonne cruise ship year-round.

After associating with the movie ‘Dear Zindagi’ recently, Singapore Tourism Board (STB) has yet again rubbed shoulders with glamour. Together with SilkAir, the regional wing of Singapore Airlines, STB has now announced its collaboration with Dharma Productions for Bollywood movie ‘Badrinath Ki Dulhania’. The movie features key scenes and songs filmed in Singapore. Talking about Singapore’s association with the movie, G.B Srithar, Regional Director for South Asia, Middle East & Africa, STB said, “This movie will appeal to all segments of Indian society with its over-arching theme of love and the joy of life. Over the past few decades, Bollywood movies have helped build an emotive connect among the Indian audiences with Singapore. We believe through Badri and Vaidehi, they will re-discover Singapore’s variety of experiences and evolving cityscape. Keeping in line with the movie’s theme, we are pleased to welcome Indian travelers to begin their endless love affair with Singapore, by visiting and re-visiting Singapore for memorable holidays.” The film, directed by Shashank Khaitan and starring Bollywood stars Alia Bhatt and Varun Dhawan, will hit the screens on Friday, March 10, 2017 across India. Currently, SilkAir and Singapore Airlines have combined operations from 11 Indian cities, namely Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Coimbatore, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Thiruvananthapuram and Visakhapatnam connecting to over 100 destinations via its hub, Singapore.

In a bid to share the festive spirit with Indian travellers, Singapore Tourism Board and Singapore Airlines have launched its campaign, ‘3 Celebrations, 1 City – Singapore’. This campaign will run from till March 2017, spanning across three key festivals starting with Deepavali (October 29, 2016), Christmas (December 25, 2016), and then Chinese New Year (January 28-29, 2017). The campaign aims at inviting Indian tourists to celebrate the festivities in Singapore during the holiday seasons. Tourists who book flights to the Lion City on Singapore Airlines and SilkAir from October to December 2016, either on their website or mobile app, will gain exclusive access to the ‘Singapore 241 Passport’ smartphone app. This app is packed with value-for-money 2-for-1 deals and offers worth up to S$1,000 (Rs. 48,000 ) across 24 participating outlets in Singapore, including popular restaurants and spas. The ‘Singapore 241 Passport’ application is compatible with both Android and iOS smartphones. STB Regional Director, SAMEA, GB Srithar said, “Singapore is a great place for celebrating holidays, with three back-to-back festivals taking place this time of the year. Indian travellers will find reasons aplenty to enjoy and bond together with their family and loved ones. Eligible visitors from India transiting on flights through Singapore, may utilise the Visa Free Transit Facility to explore and experience Singapore’s many festive and tourism offerings for 96 hours without a visa.” Singapore Airlines’ General Manager India, David Lim said, “Singapore Airlines and SilkAir are delighted to partner with Singapore Tourism Board to bring together a complete, travel experience. Our endeavour is to provide our customers a holistic package, allowing them to make the most of their festive holidays. Travellers not only experience inflight comforts …

Singapore will continue to be home to the next three editions of ITB Asia. Messe Berlin, the organisers of the event, have announced the extension of its partnership with the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) from 2017 – 2019, as it looks to continue supporting ITB Asia’s impact in the region. This also marks Singapore as the official partner country for 2017. The next three editions of ITB Asia will take place from October 25–27, 2017, October 17–19, 2018, and October 16–18, 2019. Dr. Martin Buck, Senior Vice President, Messe Berlin GmbH, said, “Next year, ITB Asia will be momentous as we celebrate the show’s 10th anniversary. Visitors, delegates and partners can expect a dedicated ‘Corporate Travel Day’ and ‘Hotel Day’, lined up with an exciting full day of conference programmes catered to these fast-growing sectors.” Melissa Ow, Deputy Chief Executive of the Singapore Tourism Board, added, “ITB Asia has grown well since its inaugural show in 2008, delivering strong content and memorable experiences for delegates over the past nine years. We look forward to working with Messe Berlin to further entrench it as the leading travel tradeshow in the Asia-Pacific region.” The ninth edition of ITB Asia brought together 846 exhibitors from 110 countries, and 895 buyers. The show also attracted more than 10,876 attendees.

Singapore’s Land Transport Authority (LTA), in collaboration with the Little India Shopkeepers and Heritage Association (LISHA), has launched a Diwali-themed train that will run on the city’s famous Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) system. The train is on the city’s North-East line, that includes a stop at the Little India station, from where one could go and take in the festive lights that decorate the main artery road of Little India. The train is decorated with colourful, Rangoli and Indian garlands-inspired designs, lotus and peacocks, symbolizing good luck. The train was launched on October 15, 2016, by Singapore’s Minister for Transport, Khaw Boon Wan and will run through mid-November. GB Srithar, Regional Director, South Asia, Middle East & Africa, Singapore Tourism Board, invited Indian travelers to visit Singapore, saying “Singapore is a year-round festive city. During the Festival of Lights, the whole Little India area comes alive with lighted up streets, Diwali bazaars, eateries serving great food and much music in the air. I can say, in a candid festive spirit, it’s a great time to visit the city where even the train gets dressed up for Diwali.”

Singapore Tourism Board recently organised a 10-day, six-city road show across key markets in India and Colombo in Sri Lanka. Themed “Extending Hands in Partnership”, the delegation was led by GB Srithar, Singapore Tourism Board’s (STB) newly appointed Regional Director for South Asia, Middle East and Africa (SAMEA). The initiative is envisioned as an annual platform for the region’s trade partners to get updated on the latest leisure and MICE offerings in Singapore. The Singapore delegation comprised representatives from top hotels, cruise liners, attractions, airlines and Destination Management Companies (DMCs), which travelled to the cities of Colombo in Sri Lanka and then to the Indian cities of Pune, Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Lucknow and Jalandhar. The sessions saw an enthusiastic turnout from travel trade professionals with an average participation of 135 agents per city. Srithar said, “As we move into the next exciting phase of promoting Singapore to wider audiences in tier II cities, we look to fostering closer strategic and tactical partnerships with the travel trade to entrench the positioning of Singapore as one of the must-see destinations for the Indian audiences.”

Singapore Tourism Board (STB) has announced the appointment of GB Srithar as Regional Director for South Asia, Middle East & Africa (SAMEA) to be based in Mumbai. Srithar is well acquainted with the Indian markets having worked in India between April 2010 and December 2013 as Area Director, South Asia. Prior to his appointment as Regional Director, he headed the Brand Campaigns team at STB’s HQ’s Marketing Group. One of his key responsibilities will be to oversee the STB’s leisure and BT MICE travel promotions, marketing and developmental efforts in the SAMEA region; and his office will work closely with travel trade and non-trade partners to promote Singapore as the destination of choice among Indian travellers. Talking about his appointment and vision for the Indian market, Srithar said, “I am happy to assume a wider role and be back in Mumbai, a place that I have enjoyed working and living in. India is a key market for Singapore. In 2015, India registered a growth of over seven per cent in Visitor Arrivals at 1,013,777 arrivals, having crossed the 1-million mark for the first time. We have also observed a consistent growth in visitor arrivals in India over the last five years. I seek to extend STB’s hands in partnership to our friends in the travel fraternity across, not only in the key metros but also in the Tier II and III cities, which will contribute increasingly to the rise of the international visitorship for Singapore.”

TIRUN, the exclusive India representative of Royal Caribbean Cruises, has signed a marketing partnership with the Singapore Tourism Board as the first recipient of the enhanced Cruise Development Fund that supports travel partners for cruise charters from Singapore. The association allows TIRUN to reach out to a larger consumer base looking to experience cruising in Southeast Asia. As a result it has introduced itineraries onboard its Voyager of the Seas sailing from Singapore that have been especially curated keeping Indian families in mind and range from three-night to eight-night sailings. Guests can cruise from Singapore to popular destinations such as Kuala Lumpur, Phuket, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Nha Trang in Vietnam, and more. They can enjoy iconic features onboard the cruise ship like the innovative ‘Flow Rider’ surf simulator, the onboard ice skating, rock climbing as well many other such activities, as they sail from one exotic South East Asian destination to another and take in the best of the resplendent culture of each port. Ratna Chadha, Chief Executive, TIRUN, said, “The semi- charter of the Voyager of the Seas is an endeavor on our part to offer Indian cruisers an opportunity to embark on a cruise with extreme facility. Sailing from Singapore is not only very easy but it’s also the most cost-effective alternative. The itineraries onboard the cruise ship have been designed to give cruisers a glimpse into the diversity and splendour of South East Asian culture while also offering them the added attraction of Indian food onboard. The sailing dates have also been strategically planned to coincide with summer vacations in India. It has been a fruitful collaboration with Singapore Tourism Board thanks to which we have managed to …

Singapore Tourism Board has announced that over 1 million Indian tourists visited Singapore in 2015 marking a year-on-year growth of 7.4 per cent in visitor arrivals. To celebrate this achievement, Singapore Tourism Board surprised all passengers flying to the country with special in-flight celebratory experiences in partnership with  Air India, Jet Airways and Singapore Airlines on December 31, 2015. Chee Pey Chang, Executive Director, South Asia, Middle East and Africa – Singapore Tourism Board, said, “2015 was a landmark year for us as Singapore celebrated its Golden Jubilee. Last year, the Singapore Botanic Gardens was accredited as a UNESCO World Heritage site and the opening of the National Gallery Singapore and Indian Heritage Centre generated great interest among Indian travellers.”